PHILADELPHIA (AP) \u2014 Joel Embiid returned to the starting lineup for the 76ers on Sunday against Atlanta after he missed\u2026<\/p>\n
PHILADELPHIA (AP) \u2014 Joel Embiid returned to the starting lineup for the 76ers on Sunday against Atlanta after he missed the last nine games in large part because of a sore right knee.<\/p>\n
Embiid had played in only six of 20 games and averaged 19.7 points and 5.5 rebounds for a Sixers team that has hovered around .500 without him. The 76ers are 4-2 with Embiid.<\/p>\n
The 76ers upgraded Embiid to questionable on the injury report on Sunday afternoon and the two-time NBA scoring champion was cleared to play after his pregame workout<\/a>.<\/p>\n The 76ers will play for the first time this season with their All-Star trio of Embiid, oft-injured Paul George and Tyrese Maxey together in the starting lineup.<\/p>\n Embiid last played in the 76ers\u2019 win over Toronto on Nov. 8 and was officially out the next night against Detroit because he wasn\u2019t cleared to play in back-to-backs in the wake of his recovery from April surgery on his left knee. The 2023 NBA MVP<\/a>, the 76ers said it was Embiid\u2019s right knee soreness that kept him from playing until Sunday.<\/p>\n \u201cI think they\u2019re just trying to get it to where he feels good enough to play,\u201d coach Nick Nurse said before Sunday\u2019s game.<\/p>\n The 76ers could use Embiid feeling good enough to play headed into a stretch where the play four games in the next seven days that include Washington, Golden State, Milwaukee and the Lakers.<\/p>\n The 31-year-old Embiid was limited to 19 games last season and had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in April following an injury-plagued season that also included a sprained left foot and a sinus fracture. He was ruled out for the season in late February after averaging 23.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.5 assists.<\/p>\n Embiid has dealt with multiple injuries since even before he entered the NBA. He suffered a stress fracture in his right foot before he was drafted out of Kansas that cost him two years. From there, it was a bone bruise here, a meniscus tear there. A busted orbital bone. A sprained shoulder. Tendinitis. Torn ligaments. Even Bell\u2019s palsy<\/a>.<\/p>\n Even with all the injuries, the 76ers still signed Embiid in 2024 to a three-year, $193 million extension<\/a> with a player option for the 2028-29 season that doesn\u2019t kick in until next season.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n